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Doctors, nurses and midwives being open and honest when things go wrong

The General Medical Council (GMC) and Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) have launched a consultation on new joint guidance to help doctors, nurses and midwives comply with their professional duty to be open and honest with people in their care when things go wrong.

The proposals cover the need to learn from ‘near misses’ as well as when something goes wrong and a patient is harmed. There is also advice on apologising to patients and those close to them.

The draft guidance (pdf) also calls on clinical leaders and employers to support doctors, nurses and midwives by creating cultures in the work place that are open and honest, and where people learn from mistakes so that future patients are protected from harm.